A typical golf club includes a club head attached to a club shaft. The club head includes a face which is designed to contact a golf ball. An upper end of the club shaft often includes a comfortable grip, which a golfer grasps to manipulate the club.
During a typical golf swing, the golfer begins the swing with the club head adjacent to the golf ball. The golfer then pulls the club rearwardly and upwardly in an arcing motion called a backswing. At a top of the backswing, the golfer reverses the direction of the swing and brings the club downwardly and forwardly causing the club head to contact the golf ball.
Typically the shaft of the golf club is flexible, causing it to oscillate, or bend backwardly and forwardly, during a swing. At the beginning of the swing, the club is in a neutral position with the club shaft substantially straight. During the backswing momentum builds in the club and the reversal of the swing direction at the top of the backswing creates a force that causes the shaft to bend backwardly from the neutral position. This is commonly referred to as “shaft lagging.”
As the shaft lagging reaches a maximum deflection, the stiffness of the shaft causes the shaft to naturally reverse directions and snap back in a forward direction towards the neutral position, and then move past the neutral position and bend forwardly from the neutral position into a position commonly referred to as “shaft leading.” When the shaft leading reaches a maximum deflection, the stiffness in the shaft again causes the shaft to naturally reverse directions and snap back in a rearward direction towards the neutral position.
In order to maximize the distance of a golf shot, the golfer should contact the ball shortly after the shaft has reached its maximum shafting lagging position. In such an instance the power generated by the golfer's swing is enhanced by the shaft's natural tendency to shift or “kick” forward from the shaft lagging position to the neutral position. If the shaft has already shifted past the neutral position and into the shaft leading position when the club head contacts the ball, then the power generated by the golfer's swing is lessened by the shaft's natural tendency to shift backwardly from the shaft leading position to the neutral position.
As such, in order to maximize the distance of a golf shot the golfer should choose a golf club shaft having a stiffness that is appropriate for that golfer's particular swing. This choice is dependent on several factors such as the power generated by the golfer's swing and the speed of the golfer's swing. If a golfer chooses a shaft that is too stiff for that golfer's particular swing, then the shaft will not deflect sufficiently to generate a “kick” behind the golf ball. If a golfer chooses a shaft that is not stiff enough for that golfer's particular swing, then the shaft will either lag or lead excessively causing the ball to leave the club head at a launch angle that is lower or higher, respectively than desired.
Golfers often discover the appropriate club shaft stiffness to match their particular golf swing through trial and error. Accordingly, a need exists for an insert for removably and interchangeably attaching to a golf club for altering the stiffness or bend profile of the club shaft.